Preparation, characterization and application of polyaniline/epoxide polysiloxane composite films

Composites of polyaniline (PAn) and epoxide polysiloxane (EPSi) are reported for the first time. EPSi is designed, synthesized and N-grafted onto the PAn backbone through covalent bonds. As-prepared EPSi-g-PAn composites are soluble in organic solvents and the corresponding films can be easily produced via a simple solution-casting procedure. The composite films combine the mechanical characteristics of EPSi and the chemical properties of PAn, enabling the facile introduction of the noble metal particles. The successful fabrication of the composites is confirmed by the investigation of the molecular structure, crystalline structure and microstructure of the materials. The resulting composite films containing noble metal particles are employed as the catalysts for the hydrogenation of phenol to produce cyclohexanone, which exhibit the convenience and recyclability for usage as well as the high catalytic activities, including the conversion ratio of 97%–100% and the selectivity as high as 84%–98%. The present work not only provides a new method to improve the processability of the conducting polymers but also describes a kind of composite materials that may display outstanding preformances in industrial catalysis.